This was a truly wonderful book, despite how long it took me to get through it. Berendt really makes reading this historical book read like fiction, smoothly gliding from one topic to another. And there are a lot of topics. Though the book is "centered" around the theme of the fire that consumed the Fenice Opera House in 1996, it branches out to discuss the happenings of prominent (and not so prominent) Venetian residents, from the battle over the estate of Ezra Pound to the man who discovered perfect recipe(s) for rat poison. It can be very involved in the politics and business of certain events (like the Save Venice Foundation debacle), though Berendt stays unbiased for much of it. What stuns me is how he manages to get all of these interviews with famous figures of Venice, he seems to be able to call up anyone and get an interview. He must be extraordinarily charismatic, I'd love to have coffee with him.

Anyway, if you're at all interested in Venice but want to read something other than Renaissance history, definitely get this book. Highly recommended.